River Shannon still rising as flood alerts stay in place

Flood alerts remain in place in parts of Ireland as the River Shannon continues to rise, over a week after Storm Desmond hit.

While there was a 2.5cm (1 inch) rise in the mid to lower stretches of the river in the last 24 hours, the rate of increase has slowed to around half that witnessed at the weekend.

The flow of water from the Parteen Weir, which controls the level on the lower Shannon, remained at the increased level of 440 cubic metres (96,800 gallons) per second on Monday.

ESB said the step was required as the level of Lough Derg upstream had risen again, albeit “marginally”.

An ESB spokesman said: “This level of water flow is likely to continue to have associated flooding to land and property in the vicinity of the Shannon downstream of Parteen Weir including the areas of Springfield, Montpelier, Castleconnell, Mountshannon (Annacotty) and the University of Limerick.

“Note that other areas between Parteen Weir and Limerick may also be vulnerable to flooding due to local issues.”

Parts of Limerick city were heavily flooded over the weekend and flood warnings remain in place in the mid-Shannon area around Athlone.

Elsewhere, ESB said the heavy rain during Storm Desmond had increased water inflows significantly into the Lee Dam reservoirs at Inniscarra and Carrigadrohid in Co Cork.

“This level of flow may have associated flooding of roads, land and property adjacent to the banks of the River Lee downstream of Inniscarra,” said ESB.

Department of Social Protection Community Welfare Services officials are on the ground in the areas impacted by the flooding, offering advice on accessing Government compensation schemes.

Irish Water said it has been able to maintain normal water supplies to the vast majority of customers, despite dealing with 89 separate incidents affecting treatment plants due to the impact of Storm Desmond.

Members of the National Co-ordination Group met again in Dublin on Monday to discuss and co-ordinate the response to the floods.

After the meeting, a spokesman said: “Local authorities continue to respond in areas affected, and remain on standby and continue to monitor the situation in the areas where further flooding may occur. The local authority response and the necessary preparations are supplemented by the Defence Forces and other service providers when and where required.”

In Northern Ireland, concerns about further flooding in Co Fermanagh have receded somewhat as the level of Upper Lough Erne has fallen in the last 24 hours.